Eating Out In Hong Kong & Cebu

I was recently in Hong Kong & Cebu, Philippines and thought i would do a run through of my meals whilst there. It is not a complete list but sort of the greatest hits. 

Shanghai Popo 336,  iSquare, TST, 

This is apparently the best branch of this fairly popular Shanghainese restaurant. Loads of local here which is always a good sign. Its a very attractive place from a design stand point and I loved its bare cemented walls, the decor being harsh and hip, the food the exact opposite. 

the menu like mostly restaurants in HKG is fairly expansive, covering plenty of ground, Noodles, Dim Sum, Vegetables, Sea Food, Meats, etc. 

The hand made noodles in a special Schezwan soup was excellent, spicy but loads of flavour. 

yummy green beans

and even yummier pancakes, freaking delicious. 

the buns were fought over, minced mushroom from what i recall 

Highly recommend a meal here, it was about HK$500 for four without booze. 

Din Tai Fung, Ye Woo Street, Causeway Bay

Have been a fan of Din Tai Fung, every since my friend Sam turned me onto them in Singapore. Every since then i have had atleast one meal a year at one of their restaurants in Singapore or Hong Kong and look forward to these with great relish. 

 

Both the branches of this Taiwanese eatery in Hong Kong have a Michelin star each and deservedly so. The food is delicious, consistent and the service is quick and impeccable. Which is especially important because i have had some less than excellent service in Hong Kong at times. 

the meal starts of with a little pot of Jasmine tea, which goes down very well. very well indeed and this is coming from a not very tea friendly person. 

Noodles with spicy sauce, what can i say, just perfect and actually not as spicy as one would reckon. 

These were the mushroom dim sum which was also muy excellent. One can also get mushrooms in a soy sauce which i didnt end up getting as it would have been too much. Next time perhaps. All in all, excellent meal with great service.

HK$300 for two without drinks. 

Tim Ho Wan Hong Kong Station, Level 1 

I end up in Hong Kong station either when i am in or heading out of HKG and always try and make a go of grabbing a bite at Tim Ho Wan which is still the worlds cheapest michelin star restaurant, although the original branch was in Mong- Kok and has since shuttered. Folks in Singapore can find a bunch of Tim Ho Wan's however. 

i got the turnip cakes this time which i missed out on the last time and everything else was much the same. check was about $90 and the wait was about 20 mins. 

Sorabol, Lee Theatre Plaza, Causeway Bay

Sorabol is a Korean restaurant tucked up on top of the LTP building, its a pain in the arse to get to if you don't take the correct elevator. 

Served up a bunch of varied kim chi while we waited for our meal. Since my mates had been there before they did the ordering. 

the kim chi pan cake was downright delicious, especially when doused with a little hot sauce. 

This was one of the 'stone' rice preparations done in a traditional Korean style, pretty good. We couldn't order to use the grill to cook our own food because we were pretty full by then. all in all a go to Korean place for a lot of people in HKG and rightfully so. 

HK$600 for four without drinks. 

The Flying Pan Old Bailey Street, Central 

One of my fav meals in Hong Kong, this 24 hour diner is super popular with breakfast crowd as well as post drink 4 am party people seeking nourishment. Although small, the place packs a serious punch when it comes to its menu which is pretty wide. Egg, Griddle, Pancakes, Frittatas, Omelets, you name it. they got it. hell they even do cocktails. 

The Rancheros were terrific, eggs sunny side up on on a tortilla with refried beans, jalapenos.  

The eggs benedict were pretty terrific as well, as good as my rancheros were, would be hard pressed to pick between the two. great good, prompt service, must check it out i reckon.

HK$250 for three no booze. 

Teppan 

was walking around on Nathan road and saw this small teppan place, no idea why i went inside, it was a little late around 2.45 and they were about to wrap up but they were kind enough to seat me. i had the porcini mushrooms with a side of veggies, mung beans and rice. the soup i did not like very much but the rest was terrific and only cost HK$75 

Kirin Ichiban 

Frozen beer at the airport by Kirin Ichiban at the airport, pricey at HK$80, tad weird but def worth trying. great for a hot summer day this. again, trust the Japanese to come up with this. 

Maxim's Cakes All across  Hong Kong 

My friend Amit, picked up a few of these to chew on while we hung out at the airport. he also took every opportunity to pick some up every time he could. good stuff this, wont go wrong picking these. 

Royal Krua Thai, SM Mall, Cebu, Philippines 

Cebu is a glorious place to Scuba dive and indulge in water sports, which is why we were there. However its not the best place in the world to eat out. Food was pretty weak across the board and we stuck to mostly bad pizza until our last day there when we decided to try our luck with this Thai joint. The decor of the space was pretty far out as well.

delicious iced tea.

terrific spring rolls. 

tofu in all kinds of hot sauce. 

all in all the food was very good and the service was super quick and friendly. The people o the Philippine have a friendly, musical way about them and can be pretty hospitable, as was our host at the restaurant. meal was 600PHP without drinks for three. 

while walking around the SM mall we came across this small ice cream space. anyway, this is a pair of warm cookies with chocolate ice cream in the middle. need i say more, 100PHP

Also, if you find yourself in Cebu and want to party, head to Mango Square, find JM-Ave and get a private table for 5000PHP. worth it and the place is banging till about 5 am. 

A Gin Evening

Gin was pioneered by the Dutch but its preference by the English was beyond anything the Dutch could have imagined. There were legal actions enacted to control and mandate the consumption of gin (check Hogarth's Gin Lane) and it was also called the principle reason for acts of vice and debauchery (excellent) 

                                   

Made with Juniper berries, for those who have never seen one they look a lot like pepper kernels but slightly larger. Crush one (its sticky) and it releases the sweet aroma of gin. Until my recent fetish for Bourbon, all ive been having for a while has been Gin & Tonic so i was only too happy to comply when i was invited over by Beefeater for a tasting. Since i was in Bandra for a long day anyway, the ride over to The Grand Hyatt was not too trying. 

Beefeater  uses a near 100 + year old recipe and their distillery is located right in Kennignton next to the Oval, a few metres away from a cousins. Despite, this it's never been my gin of choice as i pretty much grew up with the God of Bombay (Bombay Sapphire) or Tanqueray No 10 if i am feeling flush.  

we started off with a nice Gin & Bitter Lemon which is not particularly popular in these shores but deserves to be, especially since Summer is now clearly here. 

It was more of an evening with Gin, than an evening with Beefeater, From what i can recall, we tasted Beefeaters, Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire and Gordons taste and kudos to Beefeater for being comfortable with doing something like this. 

Each Gin has its own recipe and therefore its own unique taste. One thing that i did find peculiar was that some brands sell their Gin with a significantly higher alcohol content outside of the UK. Personal fav was stilll Bombay Sapphire however, dont think ill be switching, found Tanqueray to be the least likeable.  

Signed off with a Gin & Tonic, which of course has a deep connection to India. Tonic with its very high quinine content was prescribed to the English soldiers in India to stave off Malaria.

While a good deterrent it was very bitter due to its high quinine content (completely unlike tonic today which has very little quinine and is sweetened) The soldiers mixed the tonic with sugar, water, lime and their gin ration to make it palatable.  

FYI, Spain does a bunch of artisan Gin's, so keep an eye out for em (i believe they can be tried the Spanish way in a Balloon glass at Arola at JW Mariott) 

Wine Weekend at Fratelli

The Fratelli vineyard sits 350 kms from Bombay, a distance that can be covered in 5 hours if departing early enough. My friend Harpreet Singh Chadha, popularly and rather appropriately nicknamed Happy, is a frequent visitor and set us up for this past weekend.

Spending time at a vineyard can be immensely fun, having done it a few times, in different countries, i am great proponent and fortunately India offers decent experiences.

Having left at 5am, we were at the doors at 10.50 am, the drive had not prepared us for the pair of modernist buildings that house the lodgings and the press & bottling plant. The buildings i was later told were inspired by the Ferrari factory, easily the most impressive structure in Akluj which is a small town. 

They have four massive rooms, which are minmally furnished but comfortable. They even have ipod docks in case you feel like popping yours in to listen to some tunes. 

The view from our rooms was green, not something a Bombay boy is used to i suppose. The windows open right onto a gentle hill and one can walk in and out from here and completely avoid the stairs.

met with chai and cookies fifteen minutes after we got to the room. Strong chai, enough said.

then on to a stroll,  the  vineyards surrounding the press & lodging are relatively small 

but large enough to go riding your bicycle or for general traipsing around. 

they also have a bunch of ATV's around as well as a bunch of bicycles which can be taken around the property. 

Lunch was around 2pm, called in from a nearby restaurant, they menu is mostly North Indian and Indo-Chinese. Spicy as hell. Post siesta, around 5.30pm we began the tour of the production facility which is 10 feet from the lodging space.

 Fratelli is a partnership of seven (3 pairs of brothers, ergo the name ) and star vintner from Tuscany, Piero Masi. 

They have a range of 9-10 wines and the grapes reach the facility within two hours of being picked, which they reckon is a first in Asia. All the equipment is imported from Italy.

I admire their belief and their willingness to invest, $3-5million at a time when the world was amidst a slow down and other wineries too were struggling with demons of their own. 

these barrells contain Sette (seven, get it..) which is their signature creation, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese, this stays oaked for a year and i am told is not available for sale outside the winery. Prior to this folks had to pick up lots of 100 bottles for 100,000. 

The tasting room is in keeping with the modern, minimalist style and a good place to spend the evening. 

We tasted most of their product line, the Sangiovese, a grape Piero has been working with for decades is certainly the star product (especially as the Sette is unavailable for tasting) they also do a Sangiovese Blanco which is essentially a white wine from a red grape. They also do a bubbly which is actually not too bad.

The wine tour included a step into the room where the bubbly is kept and bottled. Interesting stuff. Dinner was originally planned outdoors with more wine, some music but rain played truant and we ended up back in the lounge area.

The second day began with a quick breakfast of Upma, toast and eggs done every which way. Post this we headed to the main vineyard which is located about 8kms away on a country road. Enjoyed thie short ride immensely. The driver likes to off road and would take the fun way rather than the paved way at times.

A little gazebo sits atop a hill central to the property, as far as the eyes can see its all Fratelli vineyards, you really get a sense of the scale of the enterprise. They sent another car with the food, the lunch set up and of course more wine. 

Lunch was again, north indian and chinese washed down with all the wines we tasted the night before. 

a great way to spend the afternoon, truly. 

Overall, the weekend was far better than i anticipated. The space is modern, well equipped and comfortable. They have wifi access, a pool table, table tennis, foos ball, carrom, ATV's, cycles etc. Plenty to keep people busy over the weekend. The best thing to do would be to rent all four rooms, that would make for a terrific weekend.

The wine aspect of the weekend is taken very seriously and plays out across three stages. First they show you the wine press and the bottling and storage which they take great pride in (justifiably so) This is followed by a fun wine tasting with cheese, peanuts (do buy some of these) and chips.

The third is the tour and lunch at the actual vineyard. A comprehensive weekend, far superior to the visit at Sula which is less about wine more about just spending time at the property.

Its important to understand that its not a hotel, they can probably source things if required but its far from shops and its best to carry one's supply of toiletries. They have all kinds of juices, chips, soft drinks, snacks on hand and one can get it on demand.

The food is brought in from a restaurant, so one can order whatever is required from the menu. Avoid gravies and go for simple things, like dal-rice, dry veggies as it takes 15-20 mins for the food to arrive.

The staff can also cook a pretty decent pasta. I hope they start cooking on the premises soon, that will help the meal quality soar. I also felt a lack of maharashtrian cuisine, this far upstate, it feels a little wrong to not get some of it. I am sure once they seriously look at hospitality these aspects will be addressed.

Other than this little niggle, there was no real problem. Hope to be back there soon.

Special thanks to Thingal, Ajit, Amol, Ravi who were super helpful and efficient & Mr.Babulal who manages the property very ably.

Details :
Rooms : 4
Tarriff : 7-9k per couple for 2 days and one night. Full board.
Located in Akluj, 2 Hours from Pune.
Taking the Pune - Solapur Highway is recommended but this means facing Pune traffic.
Be aware, anything less than a full weekend means 6 hours of driving each way.